The citizens of Turlock are experts at throwing the perfect block party. For the past six years, Turlock has embodied the spirit of the annual National Night Out event by bringing neighbors together with each other and local public safety and government leaders in an effort to prevent crime and foster a sense of community.

Local Assyrians are grabbing their picket signs and leaving their hometowns to defend their homeland by traveling to San Francisco on Saturday for a regional protest, just one portion of a worldwide effort demonstrating objection to the religious persecution currently plaguing Christians in Iraq.

Swanson-Centennial Park, the newly renamed park on Countryside Drive, opened for dog business this month with the addition of a fenced off area. A $35,000 donation by the Swanson Family and Pet Extreme made the dog park a reality.

This year marks the Women's Leadership Council's seventh Power of the Purse Luncheon. An annual event that brings together like-minded women in the community, this year's luncheon will once again focus on providing support to women and children in crisis.

For over seven years, Aspiranet's Turlock Family Resource Center has been providing support and resources to children and families in the Turlock area. On Aug. 7, TFRC is hoping to achieve greater visibility throughout the community at a grand re-opening of its Geer Road facility.

When the school bell rings most students are eager to escape the confines of the classroom and dart off campus, but some Turlock Junior High School students' paths may be impeded due to the construction of a median strip on the eastside of the campus on North Walnut Road.